4. No One Really Cares About You, Not Even Your Neighbour
This is one of those things which is good and bad at the same time. It’s good because you live your life on your own terms without some area gossipers making your life their daily topic of conversation.
It’s bad because sometimes you need someone to talk to. I know of a Ghanaian woman who lives at some part of Germany where she hardly gets anyone to chat to. For her to have a proper conversation, she has to call her friends at different regions and even that, who has time to sit on the phone talking when the person is rushing to work?
In Europe and America, to find someone to even talk to, laugh with or share worrying issues with is a luxury—and a lot of people are lonely. You cannot walk to your neighbour and start ‘talking plenty’ like we do back home. Your neighbour is mostly busy or does not really care about what you do with your life.
There is no human connection and that sense of community-ship we enjoy back home is missing out here. It can get depression sometimes…You can’t go about greeting everyone you meet in your ‘hood’ or on your way to wherever. No one will probably respond or a lot of them will think you are mentally unstable.
People don’t really care beyond their own noses and you have to get use to living in such an environment. Empathy is never genuine, rather a procedure requirement. And when it comes to ‘smiles’, people smile to you because it’s their job to smile—they are taught how to smile.
There’s certainly no place like GHANA! The mere fact that we’ve emigrated from a ”third world country” – which i think is a fallacious term used to paint Africa in a bad light; to advanced nations in europe or usa doesn’t mean life has become better for us. Although the western world might be steps ahead of us in terms of technology, infrastructure, healthcare, education, etc.. living here can be quite hellish as compared to the warm and stress-free Motherland GHANA. Life certainly can’t be that monotonous where you must wake up at specific times each morning just to make money for old white oligarchs under very hard conditions, have no time for a proper and healthy breakfast, lunch and dinner, live in tiny appartments with lots of restrictions, pay unnecessary bills to multi-billion insurance and credit-card corporations who don’t have the customers interest at heart, live in constant fear of running out of money or losing a job, constantly crave for well cooked Ghanaian meals, constantly yearn for warm weather, family, friends and a less stressful life, comply with rigid and stupid laws, etc, etc, etc.. Can this really be life? It’s so heartbreaking to see the white natives toil effortlessly all their lives just to be ignored and thrown in care & nursing homes with little to no support from relatives whereas back home we take care of our own and make them feel respected. With all the sunshine, warm and friendly people, good food, natural resources, beautiful weather, why would we give up all this for bad weather conditions, unfriendly/cold people, tiny living space, fatty/unhealthy food, stress, stress and more stress for meager salaries? Unless you are filthy rich with millions stacked in your account then life in europe can be likened to a prison system with no shackles and guards, it’s just done systematically in disguise. So that leads me to ask the question: are we Ghanaians cursed with ignorance and hatred for our own whilst the old white capitalists take advantage of our weak-minded and foolish attitudes, loot our resources with impunity and make mighty fortunes out of them whilst we become poorer? How i wish like-minded Ghanaians across the west would wake up from our stupor and illusion of living in ”Abrokyire” just to impress the ones left back home, realize how we’ve taken our blessed country with all the good things the west lacks for granted, repatriate and take charge of our own natural and human resources, i can rest assure you GHANA will be paradise.
Hmm well said,this article is just like what I think abt everyday.nice one and realistic.abrokyiree no be heaven ooo our pple must know,stresssss!!! You nailed it,you almost said all my experiences,feelings…..crazy weather,crazy food,crazy jobs and crazy schedules.abrokyiree no know big man,I know some big fmen come here to work in restaurants,old peoples home,morgues….all bcos of d bucks.Its interesting to note that Ghanaians are among the most traveling citizens you find in e etv corner of the globe,a sure say Iceland sef.
Hmmmmm..no where cool
There is no perfect place here on this earth, Whether Ghana, Germany, Netherlands, UK,Nigeria……
What I can say is that one must make use of the advantages that these places have to offer. For example if u find urself in a certain area one must search for the opportunities that exist there.
Finding yourself in a non english speaking country can also be seen as an advantage as u learn a new language and broaden ur horizon.
Perhaps one could establish an export and import business between Ghana and Germany due to the fact that u can speak both languages.
So it depends how you see it.